Zygarde: Meet The Third Legendary Pokémon Of ‘Pokémon Sun And Moon’

Players must try to collect as many Zygarde Cores and Cells to create the completed form of the third Legendary Pokémon of the "Pokémon Sun and Moon" video games. Photo: YouTube/The Official Pokémon Channel

While “Pokémon Sun” and “Pokémon Moon” each have its own titular Legendary Pokémon, there’s another Legendary creature that players should watch out for when The Pokémon Company’s upcoming games arrive this November.

Named Zygarde, this complex creature, which was featured in the latest teaser trailer for the two RPGs uploaded on The Official Pokémon Channel on YouTube, is listed as a Legendary Pokémon on the official Japanese Pokédex, but it is not classified under the Legendary category on the U.S. Pokédex. There isn’t an official statement on why this is so, but a plausible reason for this could be the delay in the update of the U.S. “Pokémon Sun and Moon” website.

However, this could also mean that the U.S. versions of the two Nintendo 3DS-exclusive video games would be different from their Japanese counterparts. A discernible sign to this is how Zygarde is listed as an Order Pokémon in the U.S. Pokédex, while it is categorized as a Legendary Pokémon in the Japanese Pokédex. Despite the confusion this issue brings, one thing is certain about Zygarde: it is a composite Pokémon with various forms.

In its completed form, Zygarde stands tall as a Dragon/Ground-type Pokémon with unparalleled skills in combating other Pokémon. As a matter of fact, its special move, called Core Enforcer, is so strong it easily erases the Abilities of any opponent it is faced with. With its immense power, it’s just right that Game Freak assigned this Pokémon to be the protector of the Pokémon ecosystem.

Does this mean Zygarde would be present in both “Pokémon Sun” and “Pokémon Moon”? The answer is “very likely.” After all, it wouldn’t make sense for the latest teaser trailer to hint at a mini mission that involves the collection of Zygarde’s Cores and Cells to be part of just one of the games.

In the trailer, a scene shows NPCs telling the player that upon obtaining the Zygarde Cube, the latter can start collecting Zygarde’s Core and Cells. From this scene, it’s easy to derive that players will have to scavenge for the Legendary Pokémon’s basic forms in order for them to create the different evolved forms of Zygarde, namely: Zygarde 10% Forme (dog-like), Zygarde 50% Forme (snake-like) and Zygarde Complete Forme (mech-like).

Watch how this mini mission is introduced at the two-minute mark of the teaser clip below.

In its simplest form, Zygarde exists as Core and Cells. The Cells serve as the building blocks of Zygarde’s body in its other evolved forms, while the Core serves as the brain. The official Pokémon site says that in the completed form of Zygarde, its wings and tail have their own Core, making each part capable of acting independently.

Despite being classified as Dragon/Ground-type Pokémon in all forms, each form — save for Zygarde’s Core and Cells — has its own special Ability. Zygarde 10% Forme has a special move called Thousand Arrows that can easily damage opponents even the Flying types and pocket monsters with the Levitate Ability. On the other hand, there isn’t any word yet on what Zygarde 50% Forme is capable of doing, while Zygarde Complete Form has the special move Core Enforcer (already mentioned above).

Prior to the appearance of the different forms of Zygarde in “Pokémon Sun and Moon,” they played a vital role in the “Pokémon” anime’s XY&Z arc and in the X & Y chapter of the “Pokémon” manga, as per Bulbapedia.

Players will get to know more about Zygarde and its complex forms when “Pokémon Sun” and “Pokémon Moon” officially arrive in the U.S. and in Japan on Nov. 18.

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